Sunday, June 26, 2011

Ok Tribe. You asked for the recipe for quinoa stuffed portabellos. There is no recipe as of yet, so I guess I have to go home and write one. But, I can tell you how I made them and you can take it from there.

I sauteed red & green bell peppers and onions in canola oil until tender. I cooked a package of red quinoa according to the directions. Then I combined the quinoa and veggies and feta cheese, with a little salt and pepper. I removed the gills and stems of the portabellos and grilled them until just tender. I stuffed the mushrooms with the filling and steamed them in a steam pan until heated through. ( I don't have an oven in camp.) My suggestion for at home is to stuff the mushrooms and then bake until tender and heated through, at about 375%. They are great just as is, and I can imagine how amazing they would be with a balsamic cream reduction. YUMMMMM.

Reflecting on a great week of riding before the last ride: our dear friend Jim, the dish pit guru.

There a quite a few things in life that I really don't like, few that I hate. But I hate mosquitoes. But they love me! I don't care how much mosquito goo I slather on my body, how much sagebrush I hang around the tent, or how many times I slap and swat, they get me. The mosquitoes at Three Forks really loved me. Tony and the guys sprayed the grass underneath the big top to deter them from visiting us at dinner. We covered ourselves with bug goo and long sleeves. The masses of mosquitoes prevailed. As soon as the tribe gathered for the last supper, the swarms emerged from the surrounding areas making for a short eating time and a hurried up map meeting. The tribe invented a new dance: the mosquito dance. Swat, slap, wave, eat. Swat, slap, wave, eat. They were really cute. These mosquitoes were quick little buggers. I have about 16 chomps.

We spent the morning exploring the farmer's market in Butte and visiting a great quilt shop in Whitehall. I visited the quilt shop: Jack and Jim went for a coke. The tribe had their water stop right across the street from us, and got to visit the Whitehall farmer's market while they were there.

After the ride up the pass most of the day was downhill for the tribe. They wheeled into camp and enjoyed an afternoon of socializing. Many new friendships have been made on this tour. A few, new to bicycle touring, were excited to plan a trip for next year. One rider commented that she would love to do another tour next year, but was sad that it wouldn't be the same group of people! But, you could get me and Jack!

Dinner tonight was a romaine salad, fettuccini with red sauce with three little pigs, (three kinds of sausage), pesto with roasted peppers and greek olives, orzo with a garlic cream sauce, fresh green beans, feta and parmesan cheeses, dolmas, and Angel food cake with home canned peaches for dessert. The peaches were a great hit. A jar even got used as a prize at the map meeting. These were peaches that we procured from Grand Junction, Colorado last year. Yummm.

Tony led the final map meeting and Joe presented the awards for the ride. Miss Congeniality was awarded to our new tribe member, Netzy, for being such a great, caring, addition to our clan. We love you Netzy!

Tomorrow will be up and out early. On to the final destination of Bozeman then on to home. A short 36 miles after a long week of riding. This was a great tour for everyone through some gorgeous parts of the Big Sky Country.

We broke camp at 8:00 and headed home. We stopped in Kellogg for the night and lo and behold what did we find at the hotel we chose? A parking lot filled with every recumbent you can imagine. A club ride and they are setting up their bbq and bar in front of our room. Now we know how the guests at our campgrounds feel! We also bumped into two of our riders from the Utah tour in the restaurant at the base of the gondola. They are here riding the trails with friends from Bellingham. It's a small world!

We are home for two weeks then on to Cycle the Gorge. It's almost full: but there are still a couple of slots open if you want to join us for another great ride. Happy trails!

Post Note: We are home and I just opened my latest addition of the ACA magazine. Do you know what was featured? The TaterTOT ride in Kellogg, Idaho. What's the chance that we would show up the same day as the 2011 ride? Pretty funny. And those Velomobile things are really cool looking. I guess they're really fast! I dubbed some of the trikes "bug bikes". They were green and looked like little mosquitoes! Too much fun!

The plaques for the miner's memorial: architecture in the Finlan Hotel, Butte; amazing cloud formation above camp: the "elevators" used to lower men and mules into the mine shafts: way to fix the carnival tent Joe!

Today was the layover day at Butte. No scheduled ride, just time to explore; rest; ride; rest; eat; rest. I see a pattern!

The tribe was up early and lounged under the big top, relishing the coffee and camaraderie. Some chose to ride out and follow some of the routes that Levi Lepheimer rode as a young cyclist. He is from Butte and the family name can be found everywhere. Some tribe members chose to take tours of the mine and the town, some rode up to the Mining Memorial that overlooks the pit mine. On June 8, 1917 there was a fire in one of the mines that killed 168 miners. Between 1898 and 1967 over 2000 miners lost their lives in the mines. Jack, Jim, Linda and I drove up to the memorial and spent half an hour reading the history of Butte and the mines and the hard way of life it was for everyone from the miners, their wives, and all of the community. The town, in it's boom, had over 100,000 people living and working there. Today there is 30,000. Half of the buildings are boarded up. A large percent of the inhabitants live in poverty, the homes and buildings in disrepair. A stark contrast to the mansions and restored homes scattered about. It was very interesting to explore the neighborhoods: I love to follow the back streets and alleys of places new to me: you see the real heart of the area, not just what the chamber wants you to see.

There is a great read, The Copper Kings, that is recommended that covers the history of the mining boom in the Butte area. There were 3 major mine owners that ran the city and the lives of everyone there. It was a bloody history with the unions and the workers. I have not read it, but am looking forward to the copy that Jim is going to send me. (Hint, hint Jim.)

Speaking of Jim, I want to thank him so much for coming out from lovely, humid Baltimore to slosh around in the dish pit for a week. We met Jim on the Oregon Gorge tour a few years ago. He loves to spend his vacation time up to his elbows in soapy water somewhere that there is going to be guaranteed to have: hot sun, torrential rainstorms, mud, mosquitoes, and lots of beer. I think it's the lots of beer that gets him here. And our friendship.

After a day of wandering, the tribe feasted once again on a Fajita dinner. Chicken fajitas, beef burritos, re fried beans, and all of the trimmings with chocolate brownie surprise to top it off, a good part of the tribe shuttled out to Fairmont Hot Springs for an evening of soaking and swimming. Some of the tribe wandered back into town for a pub crawl, and some opted to turn in early.

We are up early tomorrow for a short uphill over Pipestone Pass and then down hill to a great campground at Three Forks. Two more days!

Friday, June 24, 2011

It was quite a windstorm! Part of the tribe taking shelter from the storm (ps. anyone recognize the Director of the Board for ACA?) A view of our camp: doors in Historic Butte & Walkerville: the Daley mansion in Butte.

I am now renowned not only for feeding the tribe, I am now known for sheltering the tribe! We got into Butte around noon and set up camp, started dinner, and waited for the rain. And wind, rain, thunder & lightning we got! I think the winds gusted up to 60mph, taking out the carnival tent and sending tribe members for shelter under my truck! Pretty cute. Jack and I spent the 1/2 hour of storm hanging onto our pop up tent to keep it from blowing away. We got soaked. Fortunately, we had dinner pretty much done before the skies broke loose. Curried chicken, peanut yam tofu, steamed rice & lentils, sauteed snap peas, spicy cabbage salad and cookies & pound cake for dessert.

The campus that we are staying at; Missoula Tech; is a beautiful campus with a fabulous museum of rocks and a museum of mining. There is also a mine tour that takes you down into an old mine and exploring for about 2 1/2 hours. Butte was built in the late 1800's when copper and silver were discovered here. The history is fascinating, I wish we had more time to take the tours and learn more. We will get to use a car tomorrow and will go out and explore for a couple of hours.

All of the tribe made it safely to camp and enjoyed great showers in one of the dorms. Late afternoon found them inundated with a group of youngsters attending the Outward Bound Camp at the college. They asked questions about the ride, how strenuous it is, what and how much they eat, (remember tribe, I control the quality, not the quantity, of what you eat!), where they are from, etc. etc....

A few of the tribe set their tents up next to the stone wall at the edge of the soccer field that we are camped on. It was quite entertaining for me this afternoon to watch the little Golden Mantled Ground Squirrels explore their tents & bikes. How many goodies did you guys leave in your tents? How many do you have left? I love critters. More tomorrow!

Joe and Cory test driving the recumbent tandom: The Big Hole River: the Tribe at the Wise River Club enjoying the music: cattle drive through town.

Wednesday's ride was a long haul for the tribe: 75.3 miles from Dillon into Wise River, climbing Badger Pass and climbing up the Pioneer Mountain Scenic Byway, then down through Grasshopper Gulch and then 30 more miles into Wise River. They hit 6,760 feet at Badger Pass! It was a glorious day for a ride, heating up in the afternoon as they wheeled into the "dot on the map" Wise River that hosts two saloons, one merchantile, one hotel (part of one of the saloons), one restaurant and the community center that we used for meals. We were a little spread out, camping at the school, dining a few blocks away at the c. center, then showering in rooms at the hotel/cabins a few more blocks away. Marker Bob had arrows going every which way around town!

After dinner we were treated to live music at the Wise River Club. The band that Tony hired did not show, so the owner, a character of a Scott's Man, picked up his guitar and a friend and gave a great performance. Evidently he played with a band that opened for Van Halen way back when. It was a fun way to wind down a long, long, day.

We got the tribe up and out early for another quite long day of 54 mles to Butte. They wander along to the mining town of Anaconda, then up to Fairmont Hot Springs then into Butte where we will camp at Montana Tech. It's going to be another hot day, thunder showers predicted for the afternoon. We got held up going out of town as we encountered a cattle drive going up the canyon. The babies are so cute! But talk about a smelly, messy way to cover 5 miles!

We will have a layover day in Butte. Lot's of exploring to take place with the mines and the old downtown!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Going up: the tent crew putting up our dining room: the view from the second day's climb: going up! The second days climb (on a tandom recumbent trike no less!) Lilacs everywhere.The bike camp at Twin Bridges. GOATS! I got to feed goats.

Jack and I left the tribe in Cedar City on Friday morning and headed North to Montana. We drove to Idaho Falls the first day, then on to Bozeman. What a gorgeous drive through West yellowstone, down the Gallatain River into Bozeman. Sadly, we saw no wildlife. I wanted moose and elk and wolves, oh my.

The Montana staff arrived on Saturday and we spent a lovely evening bbq'ing brats and chicken and reliving past trips. The Montana tribe arrived on Sunday to an overcast day with random rain showers. We had a great time watching Joe and Cory put up the carnival tent for our outdoor dining room! And we all lost our wagers the Mo would not arrive with the van from Utah before 4:00. Good job MO!!! After the initial map meeting for the week the tribe dined on coleslaw with apples and craisins, bbq'd pulled pork, opa's sausages w/ sauerkraut, steamed potatoes and carrots and cookies for dessert. Those sausages have made quite a hit, and FYI you can order them on line for home delivery!

After a rainy night the tribe was up early for a completely fabulous ride through green, rolling hills; wandering along the Madison River, into the little town of Norris and then into Ennis, population 840. If you're driving through Norris you have to stop at the Adirondack chair store on the corner. It's one of 4 buildings in Norris so you can't miss it. If I could fit the greenhouse that they build into my truck, I would be hauling it home. ( I was able to bring home a chicken coupe from Missoula 2 years ago, Jack said it wouldn't fit but it did!) I think the green house wouldn't fit. Instead, I bought a really cute bird house to put in my mom's garden.

In Ennis we stayed at the high school just a block from town. Really great shopping, antiques and bars.

Dinner in Ennis was a spinach salad with strawberries & honey mustard dressing, Greek lemon chicken, steamed asparagus, basmati rice, and brownies for dessert. The vegetarians, quite an easy bunch on this trip, feasted on Quinuo stuffed portabello mushrooms. YUMMM! They are so good and so easy. I will post the recipe.

On Tuesday the tribe was up uber early: a little nervous about the hill that they at been staring at all afternoon. Kind of a hill. Maybe more like a pass. Ok, almost 2000 feet of climb early on. But there was a great downhill on the other side! And, you ended the downhill in historic Virginia City, population140. I'm sensing not many people live out here. After passing through Nevada City, and for the lucky few; stopping at the town bakery for amazing cinnamon rolls. After passing through the town of Alder, population 125, the tribe meandered along another 47 miles into camp in Dillon. (population 3500, whoohoo!) Lunch was served at the rest stop in Twin Bridges, population 375, (ok: I'll try and get off of the population thing). There is a really cool bike camp at the rest stop, providing touring cyclists with restrooms, showers, an enclosed dining area, dish wash station, and message board to pass on info to other riders. What a great resource. Point of interest: the bike camp is situated next to the old state orphanage. It's for sale if you're in the market.

The dinner tonight was a new menu: I was sweating this one: Texas tossed green salad, steamed rice, 2 bean chili with pork, from scratch no less, shrimp jambalaya, grilled tortillas, and Nana's rum cakes for dessert. The chili, as well as the jambalaya, turned out great! The recipe for the chili and Jambalaya can be found in the cook book, Texas On The Plate, written by Terry-Thompson- Anderson. I picked this up in Fredericksburg, Texas, and would highly recommend it as an addition to your cook book collection. You can find it on Amazon for about $10.00 less than what I paid for it. The only problem that I have with it is that I don't think I have any local rattlesnakes to make the rattlesnake chili. I'll have to source that one.

Tomorrow we are of to the town of Wise River, population about 70, (I can't help it). We will double the population of the town! Lot's of climbing tomorrow, so off for a massage and early to bed. Life is tuff.

Friday, June 17, 2011

Old home in Panguitch: brownies & beer; does it get any better? Bob P. after the long ride to Cedar City: Jack hard at work on luggage: the tribe at dinner at Willow Glenn: the staff dinner table.

I have not posted on my blog for the last couple of days: all has been kind of a blur. I am really stressing trying to coordinate with the Red Cross and Matt's CO to get him home for Dad's service. The Red Cross has been amazing: his CO a little non compliant. And, Scott is off doing his physical exams to join the Marines after graduation next year! I am very proud of my boys, but sometimes they just don't listen!

I know I fed my tribe this week, I think I fed them well, but it has been such an emotional roller coaster. I couldn't tell you what they had for lunch today! I can not express how wonderful the tribe has been this week. So, so supportive and kind. Thank you so much, guys. I really hope that the tour was a good experience, and that you ate well.

Enough said: We left Bryce Canyon on Wednesday after spending time exploring the Canyons. The weather was great and many hikes and bike rides took place. The tribe ventured into the little town of Panguitch and most stopped at Henrie's Drive In for shakes, or a great greasy burger. I know we did!
The double chubby burger is way too good! I really needed the corn dog and the taco to top it off!

Panguitch is a jewel of a town: it has a deep history that unless you dig in and explore,you would think it was just another dot on the map. Panguitch was settled in 1864 by Mormon emigrants. Panguitch is the Paiute Indian word for "big fish". Panguitch lake is known for it's trout fishing. In 1864 the crops that the settlers put in froze before harvest, leaving the people with no supplies for the winter. A group of 7 men volunteered to go over the mountains and obtain supplies. They used quilts, made by the Mormon women, to support themselves as they trudged through the deep snow. The second weekend in June Panguitch holds their annual quilt festival to commemorate this.

If you explore the town you will see that most of the older homes are made of brick. There was a large masonry business here after the town was settled and many of the workers were compensated partially for their work by receiving bricks to build their homes.

The other part of Panguitch's history that is quite controversial is the Mountain Meadows Massacre. It is controversial because the exact direction of the orders to carry out the massacre are not clear. Many believe it was by B. Young himself, while others believe it was a group of local Mormon settlers. In 1857 a group of non Mormon settlers arrived in Salt Lake from Arkansas. They were short on provisions and were denied assistance from the Mormon settlers in the area. They moved on to the Mountain Meadow that is just North West of St. George, South West of Cedar City. While camped there a group of Mormon men dressed as local Indians converged on the camp on September 11, 1857. They battled with the Arkansas settlers for 5 days until sending in a sentry to supposedly negotiate a settlement. When the settlers agreed they were attacked again and 120 emigrants the were murdered and buried in shallow graves. The children under the age of 7 were spared and were adopted into local Mormon homes. The US government investigated the massacre, but this was interrupted by the Civil War. Only one man, John D. Lee was indicted. He was thought to be the "brains behind the massacre". His history reaches back to the early emigration of the Mormons to Utah. He was the adopted son of B. Young and a friend of Joseph Smith, founder of the LDS. After the massacre he fled to Colorado river and founded the Lee Crossing. He practiced plural marriages and had 19 wives and fathered 67 children. In 1874, when indicted for his participation in the massacre, he was executed at the sight of the massacre, supposedly sitting on the side of his coffin. His body laid in the basement of the city hall in Panguitch for a long period of time, as no one wanted to bury him. He was finally laid to rest in the cemetery just East of Panguitch.

It is really interesting to explore the history of the places that we travel!

Panguitch is also home to the best hardware store I have ever seen. As the town is pretty isolated, they carry everything. Even fabric and quilt supplies! Yeah!

The tribe made down the mountain: Cedar Breaks is still closed due to snow, so they rode around by Duck Creek. The winds were pretty horrendous: many chose to sag. Not a bad idea! The alternate route that the tribe took today is a beautiful ride: aspen trees, meadows, miles of lava fields. I think it is even better than Cedar Breaks. After fighting the winds that blew every way but the way they should have, the tribe came into camp and finished their last dinner of this trip. With spicy cabbage salad, yellow curried chicken, peanut yam tofu, basmati rice, sauteed snow peas, and fresh baked brownies for dessert, they feasted well.

We had a great last map meeting, with awards for the oldest male rider (81:amazing!), the oldest female rider (76 way to go!); the heaviest luggage, the most stylish luggage, and a few more. We presented Jack P. with a luggage scale to help keep him entertained in his 20 hours of down time every day! (Sorry Jack, had to pick on you this trip.)

After a good breakfast this morning we sent the tribe on their way. We are headed to Montana, so I will keep you posted on that ride! Again, thank you Utah Tribe for helping me through this week. Happy Trails.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Fred Beals, Cycle Washington 2010. Doing what he loved; sharing the bounties of the Pacific Northwest.

I can't express how much Dad will be missed. By me, my children, my family, and those who were fortunate enough to know him. Thank you to all of the tribe members that shared in his life the last 17 years for adding to his rich heritage. He loved the bike tours, traveling to Montana, Utah and of course, the Washington tour. He created some lasting friend ships with many of the riders as well as the staff. ( Erin, Kim, Tom, Bob, Linda, Tony, Annie, John G., he always wanted to know where you were and what you were doing.)

He loved trading stories and sharing his knowledge about the great state that we live in. He loved being able to provide the salmon and sometimes clams that we enjoyed on the tours. He loved sharing in my nomadic life style, while worrying all of the time. He watched his grandchildren grow up with the weird Mom, hauling them around the country chasing bikes. He was and always will be such a huge part of who I am and what I do. Dad, we love you and will forever miss you.

A new meaning to the phrase: shoe tree; the awesome threesome (Ranger Tommy, Kevin, Marker Bob); the Utah tribe at dinner: my new bff: Linda off for a hike.

What a glorious day for a bike ride! After riding into Hatch (not much has changed except the tile on the bathroom floors and new showerheads) and completely devouring a dinner of marinated vegetable salad, Greek lemon chicken, curried rice & lentils, sauteed zucchini & patty pan squash, and Nana's world famous rum cakes for dessert, the tribe settled in for a quiet night. They got up early (almost even Mo) and headed up the hill for a short ride to Ruby's Inn at Bryce Canyon. I think everyone made it in before noon and headed up to hike and sight see. The weather is so good right now, perfect for exploring the Queen's Court, Fairyland, Wall Street. If you haven't been here this is a park you need to see.

This was a hard day and a half for me and for Jack, as well my family. My dad passed away on Monday at about 2:30 pm. It is hard to be out here and not be close to my boys and family. I won't be home for two weeks: many tears are being shed. The tribe is being so wonderful: thank you.

Tonight is BBQ night: straight from Fredericksburg, Texas we will serve up Opa's sausages with sauerkraut, smoked brisket, cowboy beans, wedge salad, and assorted home made cakes for dessert.

Tomorrow is more exploring and then downhill to Panguitch. We missed the quilt walk by one week. What's up with that oh great trip organizers in Missoula? Where's the priorities? Just kidding. Jack was gracious enough to stop yesterday at a quilt shop in Cedar City. Too many quilt shops, too little time.

SCONES! Line caught rainbow trout: Goofing off before the ride (isn't there a no butt shot rule?" : Really cool wind devices in Springdale: Take note ACA:Mo was really at breakfast before 8:00; the staff "hard at work" in St. George.

And we're off to Springdale! After a yummy breakfast of fresh raspberry scones and such the tribe headed up the canyon to Zion National Park. It was a great day for a ride: warm but overcast, so not too hot. We arrived at a packed camp ground. I don't ever remember the parks being this full. Prior to 9-11 they were busy, then after 9-11 there was no one in the parks for a couple of years. Now the Euro is strong and people are on the move! Most of the tourists are French and German, with a few Californians thrown in the mix.

Jack and I did a quick Costco run, had a great, inexpensive breakfast at Bishop's grill in Washington, and stopped at my favorite pottery store in Springdale. We snagged a great clay pot by my favorite artist, the Mayor of Springdale, for 40% off !! Yeah! Then headed into camp.

Dinner tonight was a feast of all feasts. We love to fish, and trout fish with my Dad every chance we get. A few years back I bought a commercial Vacuseal machine and we use it for everything: including the 51 line caught rainbow trout we served tonight!

The tribe spent the afternoon touring and hiking in Zion. I think the Emerald Springs was a favorite this year. The water level is too high to hike the Narrows. The water level in every river and stream from Washington to Utah was extremely high!

Tomorrow is the incredible ride up the switch backs to the tunnel where they catch a shuttle through to the other side and then ride through amazing places like the Checkerboard Wash and down to the beautiful downtown Hatch, Utah. I've raved about Hatch before. We'll see what's new there!

Saturday, June 11, 2011

We're here! Bright, sunny, hot Southern Utah. It's so nice to be out of the clouds and rain! Granted we did have enough sunny days at home to get the garden in and get one fishing trip in. (Dad caught 9, I caught 8, Jack caught 1, but who's keeping track!) I spent quite a bit of the time between trips working on quilts, recuperating from the Texas crash, and working at the school. I spent one day putting together a camp survival kit for a special friend attending his first MDA camp this summer. Andriy, if you read this it is a requirement that you use all the tools I supplied you to torment your counselor: I think 202 wacky camp songs and 500 water balloons is a good start. We also got Scott ready to head to Italy and Greece in 11 days and Matt off to Camp Lejeume to prepare for his tour in Afghanistan. We had a nice dinner with a long time rider and staff person from the ACA rides: Mr. Gantt I hope your trip in Alaska is going well! Hope the mosquitos are leaving you alone. The other great news this week is that Aaron got accepted to grad school at the U in Missoula! Way to go Aaron! Oh yes, Jack bought a hole in the water to dump money into. Actually, he bought my dad's boat! We hope to spend a lot of time bringing home Dungeness crab and salmon!

This is trip #19 for Cycle Utah! I did not cater the first tour but have every one since. The first year we were here was hysterical. We flew into Vegas, rented a mini van, loaded up at Costco (there was not one here at that time) and drove to St. George. We transferred to a Uhaul truck and met my parents at the camp ground. They drove down from Seattle in their motor home with Scott and all of our equipment. Sysco Food Services dropped our shipment in the parking lot of the camp in 100* heat and we spent hours packing it all into STYRAFOAM coolers with ice. Needless to say the coolers did not last the trip. We had over 100 riders plus staff. They kept us running to keep them supplied in beer. The liquor store in Panguitch had never had such a busy day! I can still remember the awe and amazement that I experienced when we rounded a curve to Zion and the canyon opened up before us. It still takes my breath away! We had no way to transport the food that we had left over at the end of the trip, so we had a give away at the campground in Cedar City: many happy trailer park residents that day.

We have the A crew this week to help make for a great week. Daryl and Kim are here from Kentucky: Kevin just finished the Utah Inn to Inn and is mechanic for the week: Jack and his grandson Blake: Marker Bob and Linda on massage and of course Ranger Tommy, our fearless leader! The weather is projected to be great: cold in Hatch but that's how it always is! At least it's not under water. It looks like parts of Montana is: we hope the water goes away before next week.

Oh, I have one bone to pick with a picky camper: you can complain all you want about not having beer in State Parks: but read the sign at the entrance: Public consumption of alcoholic beverages is prohibited in all State Parks. That means you can get a nice fat ticket and we can be removed. Also, we want to be able to use the parks again, so we follow the rules: we don't make the them.

So: follow us on a great trip through the canyons of Utah and see what mischief we can get into!

About Me

I cook for Adventure Cycling tours: 6 this year. That puts me about 50 days living in a tent! I have 3 young men (can't call them boys anymore), my husband Jack, 2 dogs;Pumpkin Patch & Scamp:(who lives with my mom) one bird, two guinea pigs, and one obnoxious cat.